Cheater, Cheater
by bowandawkward
Summary: A friendly game of chess and some embarrassing realizations.


"You must know by this point that you've no hope of winning."

"You sound very sure of yourself."

"I _am_ sure, my dear Commander. Your defeat is inevitable. I suggest you admit it now - you'll be much less disappointed later."

"So you say every time we play, and yet-" Cullen takes Dorian's queen with a smirk "-I'm not worried."

"Oh, but you should be."

They play in comfortable silence for a while longer, broken only when soft footsteps approach. A small smile curves Dorian's lips and he winks before he announces loudly, "Llewelyn! Come to join us, have you?"

It's almost comical how quickly the Inquisition's Commander turns in his seat, half rising only to bang his knee against the table. It upsets a few game pieces and he quickly drops down again to reach out and right them. A hint of pink dusts high across his cheeks as he attempts to divide his attention between the chess board and the young elf, now standing to his left. "Scout Lavellan, I- ah, hello."

"Hello, Commander," she replies with a barely suppressed smile. "Dorian."

"Something I can do for you, or did you just miss me?"

Her expression softens. "I just thought you might want to know that Hollis is back. They finished earlier than expected."

"Commander, I'm afraid I no longer have time to dance around my victory. Prepare yourself for defeat."

"Well, fortunately for you..." Cullen makes his move, and for a moment Dorian simply stares. A smile stretches across the blonde's lips even as a scowl marks Dorian's.

"No need to be so smug." The mage stands, turning to Llewelyn. "Perhaps you can knock him down a peg - he'll be insufferable otherwise."

A long stretch of silence follows his departure until Cullen finally clears his throat. Llewelyn's green eyes snap to meet his and for a moment he forgets what he meant to say. "Ah...I should probably be going as well. Unless - would you care for a game?"

"I-" she hesitates for only a moment, then nods, smiles, and slips into Dorian's empty seat. "Yes, I would like that."

The smile Cullen offers her is pleased, if slightly surprised, and he makes quick work of resetting the board.

"In all the games you and Dorian have played, I've never seen him win. Is that because you're exceptionally good, or is he just exceptionally bad?"

The man huffs a laugh and shakes his head. "No, it's not...Dorian isn't bad at all. As a child I played often, against my sister. She won all the time, of course. It took my brother and I weeks of practicing before I finally won." He glances up from the board and grins. "The look on her face was priceless."

"I didn't know you had siblings," Llewelyn comments. Her hand hovers over a piece before she decides on another and makes her move.

"Two sisters and a brother, though I don't write as often as I should. What of you? Do you have any siblings with your clan?"

She shakes her head, dark hair shifting with the movement. "No siblings. Though, Hollis has always been more of a brother to me than a cousin, really."

"You're that close?"

Llewelyn raises a brow at the surprise in his tone, moving one game piece before she answers. "I followed him all the way here, didn't I? Would you cross the Waking Sea and all of Ferelden to find someone who isn't deeply important to you, Commander? Someone you don't love?"

"Well...no, I suppose not."

"Then you have your answer." She smiles.

It takes Cullen far too long to pull his gaze from the red lines of vallaslin upon her lip.

"It seems that this game is mine." The ex-Templar leans back in his chair, fingers steepled over his breastplate. A note of wry amusement enters his voice. "Though, I can't help but wonder: the cheating. Do you all truly think I don't notice, or is it just that- S-Scout Lavellan?"

Wide, horrified green eyes remain locked on him for a moment longer before Llewelyn covers her face with both hands and whines a soft, "oh, no."

"Lavellan, what's wrong?"

"You didn't say anything when Dorian did it! I thought-" she cuts off, shaking her head, bright red all the way to the tips of her tapered ears.

Cullen stares, confused. And stares for a little longer before a slow smile curves his lips.

A loud burst of laughter forces the elf to peek out from between her fingers. She finds Cullen leaning forward against the table, his shoulders shaking with mirth, and the sound soon becomes infectious.

"You taught yourself to play by watching my games against Dorian, but he always-"

"I swear I didn't know he was cheating!"

"I believe you," the blonde says, still grinning. "You were far too brazen for even an amateur trickster."

Llewelyn folds her arms and looks away, ears burning.

"I'm afraid I must be going now, but..." He hesitates, and it's enough to make her meet his eyes again. "I would be happy to teach you to play properly. If, ah, if you want to, of course."

"I would like that, Commander. I would like that very much."

A/N:

Hello all! This story was written based on a reviewer's suggestion, so thanks DSlayer534! I had a lot of fun with this one, though small talk is difficult for me to write. In my personal head canon Llewelyn is not the Inquisitor, which I'm sure you clever people caught. Hollis and several other OCs that might make an appearance in these drabbles belong to my awesome friend Liam, and I'm using the OCs with their permission. I hope you enjoy, please leave a review - I truly do appreciate them, and welcome any suggestions.

-Ash


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